Engaged!

Well, in case the title didn't give away what this post is about, Melanie and I are engaged! On New Year's Eve I took her to Il Portico, an Italian restaurant in downtown Edmonton. After dinner, I got the waitress to take our picture and as she snapped the photo, I revealed the rock. Mel was so surprised! Now before I get a bunch of questions about when the date is, we haven't decided yet! First the big decision to make is, do we have it in Alberta, or Nova Scotia? I'll keep you posted...in the meantime, check out the pics for proof of Mel's surprise.

Halloween Photos

Here's some pictures from our office halloween party that we had last week. Our engineering group decided to go as the Trailer Park Boys, and we won a pizza party for the Best Performance! Also, there's one from the halloween party at Isaac & April's place (Deal anyone?)

Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (2006)

Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (2006)

Wow. This movie was awesome. And as you know from my previous reviews, yes, there will be spoilers.

Will Ferrell is a genius. How he can make a seemingly ridiculous SNL-esque idea into a comedy/heartwarming drama is beyond me. Pure Genius. I think the best quote was, “Susan, I've never heard you talk like that... Are we about to get it on? Because I'm harder then a diamond in an ice storm right now.”

Some of the most memorable scenes were when Ricky Bobby (Will Ferrell) stabs himself in the leg with a knife because he believes that he is paralyzed, or when he thinks he is on fire after a car crash and subsequently strips down to his helmet, boots and underwear while stop, drop, and rolling. And of course there is the “Grace” scene, where Ferrell prays to Baby Jesus in a manger. Hilarious.

I can’t say that this movie was funnier or wittier than Thank You For Smoking, but as far as Will movies go, it was great. So many great one-liners and nonsensical scenes had me laughing the entire time. The homosexual French driver was also a riot. Played by Sacha Baron Cohen (who stars in the upcoming Borat movie), the character was the perfect antagonist in this weird and wild film. I want to see his TV show now, Da Ali G Show.

That’s all I feel like writing on the subject. Go see this movie. NOW.

~ Dan out.

Thank You for Smoking (2005)

Thank You for Smoking (2005)

Yet again, last night I found myself watching a non-mainstream movie...is this a new trend for me or what?

** Disclaimer ** I henceforth absolve myself of any and all responsibility for revealing any or the entire plot, characters, or ending of the aforementioned film. Thus, here is what I think of it:


I am not a smoker. Nor will I ever be a smoker. Sure, maybe I have shared a puff or two of a Colt, or similar flavored cigar, or even a Cuban once (I think), but by no means am I condoning the practice. In fact, I believe that cigarettes, tobacco, and the like should be made illegal, worldwide. But I digress, I am writing to you about a movie I just saw…

Thank you for smoking…I think that in the context of a movie title, this will be the only time that I ever utter (or type) these words. However, even as a non-smoker, I thoroughly enjoyed this clever, witty film told from the perspective of the cigarette-producing corporations.

Aaron Eckhart plays Nick Naylor, a lobbyist from Big Tobacco, a coalition of all the cigarette producing companies in the United States. His job, and a very challenging one at that, is to promote a product that eventually kills all its users. Throughout the course of the film, we see what exactly being one of the most hated men in America entails. The opening scene takes us to the set of “Joan”, a daytime talk show with the day’s topic of smoking. On this particular episode, Naylor is pitted against advocates from lung cancer societies, mothers against tobacco, and even Cancer Boy. What follows is some of the most witty dialogue and clever plotline that I have seen in a movie for quite sometime.

Basically the entire film can be summed up in two words: personal choice. The film is not so much a pro-smoking film as it is a pro-choice film. That is what makes it so brilliant. Christopher Buckley is the writer of the novel on which the film is based, and the writing is pure genius. Not only does he make you think, and think hard, about one of the most debated issues in our society today, he also takes a stab at the non-smokers, making us look like nerds and complete fools. But I can laugh at myself; and I watched TYFS with a grain of salt.

Naylor himself is a smoker, although we never see him smoke once in the film. Come to think of it, and this is quite ironic, but I don’t believe that I saw one person in the entire movie light up. Haha, that is quite amusing now that I think of it…

As a lobbyist, Naylor is just doing his job, “For the mortgage”. Even though he is promoting what is arguably one of the biggest killers in human history, he has fun doing it. At the end of the show, he turns down an offer to come back and work for Big Tobacco after being fired a few days earlier. Apparently he made the correct decision, as the American people won a major lawsuit against the tobacco companies that made them go under. Instead, Naylor accepted a lobbyist position with the cell phone companies, promoting guess what, that’s right you guessed it, the fact that cell phones do not in fact cause brain cancer. Makes you wonder how the guy sleeps at night.

All in all, I think TYFS was a very well made movie. You should go see it. Now. And all debates about democracy aside, yes I support choice, but I do not believe that choosing to smoke is a personal decision when it affects everyone around you and is killing people who have never smoked in their life. Smoking is your right, in this day and age, but it should not be. I am sick of all the arguments for smoking when the very people partaking of this nasty habit are the ones draining our healthcare system, stinking up our public restaurants and universities, and polluting the atmosphere.

~Dan out.

A Scanner Darkly (2006)

A Scanner Darkly (2006)

This movie was just released in the independent theatres, such as the Uptown in downtown Calgary, and the Princess in Edmonton on Whyte Ave. I must admit that from watching the preview, the movie turned out nothing like I expected, which is a good thing. Let me explain. *Warning* the following contains spoilers, as does the link above. If you want to see the movie, watch it first, and then read this blog. Consider this your final *Warning*

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The basic premise of the film is based upon Philip K. Dick's drug trips, and the plot is quite intriguing, even though the movie seems disconnected and random at times. Keanu Reeves plays an undercover narcotics agent in the future, seven years from now; a time where a highly addictive hallucinogen known as “Substance D” has taken a hold of society. However, this film is not your standard “sting” plot; instead of Reeves assuming another identity when he goes undercover, he has multiple identities while in the very police station that he is working for.

How he accomplishes this is with a shape-shifting suit that uses holographic technology to mimic millions of different people all at once, their physical features co-mingling and changing constantly. Inside the cop shop, he is known only as Fred, with no one, not even his direct supervisor, knowing that his real identity in the drug world is Robert Arctor. I was surprised at this use of the suit and somewhat disappointed that the suit was not more prominent throughout the film, but I was thoroughly impressed when the credits rolled.

That being said, the coolest thing about this film is the use of Interpolative Rotoscoping, a special effects technique that takes live action footage and then “draws” overtop of it; almost like bringing a comic book to life. I like to think of it as Sin City’s Film Noir squared…Darkly has even more style and feel to it.

I noticed a few “matrix-esque” elements (maybe due to Reeve’s involvement?). First, and most obviously, there is the dual life theme that is used in many more movies than just the Matrix, but Darkly seems akin to the sci-fi thriller since Arctor is again using technology to assume another identity, as Neo did to become Mr. Anderson.
Second, Reeves seems to play the same type of character in Darkly that he did in the first half of the Matrix, that is, he is again a somewhat confused and depressed person with a perpetual look of bewilderment plastered on his face.
Third, we come back to the shape-shifting suit. I’m sure that you can see where I am going with this since Agent Smith played a shape-shifting computer program in the matrix itself.
Finally, the title says it all. A Scanner Darkly is about a world where every word you say is recorded, every action analyzed. The ironic idea about the police force is that the only privacy exists in the comfort of your own suit, where you are everyone, and you are no one. Again, in the Matrix we saw a world where once you “plugged-in” you could be tracked and hunted down.

As a whole, Darkly is a revealing and startling look into our possible future which could potentially see our already violent drug underworld become even worst. It is also a bold statement about the no-so-black-and-white morals and practices of our governments and police, and the grey-area decisions they are faced with.

I will leave the rest of the plot unexplained, as I believe that you should go see this movie right now. Even if you feel a little spooked by the plot or the fact that the film is playing at an independent theatre, home to such gems as Napoleon Dynamite and Nightwatch, you should go see it. NOW.

~Dan out.

The Americans are Ridiculous!

Okay, now that I have your attention with that generalizing title, here is what you should go read:

Welcome to MichaelCrichton.com

Read the "Essay that Breaks the Law". I know it's a few months old, and no, I don't actually know the outcome of the Supreme Court ruling in the states, but it is still a very interesting and infuriating read.

Let me know what you think in my comments section.

~Dan out.

Mexico Baby!!

Hi everybody!! Finally you all can enjoy the photos from our trip to Puerto Vallarta via the magic of the Intraweb. I'll let the pictures do most of the talking. Here goes...


April 28th: One day till I leave! See how happy Mel is that I'm going?




April 29th: Leave on a plane bright and early to Calgary and then onto PV













May 1: Game 6 at the No Name Cafe with other Edmonchuks.







May 2: Matt buys a blanket, breaks the bed...

Yes its true...about a week into our trip Matt decided it would be a good idear to jump onto the bed that he and I were sharing (whistle whistle purrr) and he subsequently broke the box-spring. It was quite amusing and I got it on video. There has not been a bill in the mail so I assume the hotel never found out...haha!

May 3rd: The Beauty of PV, Parasailing, and Bullfights! Ole!!

May 8th: Sunsets are abundant in PV

May 10th: Shopping and Triple OT







This is our hotel from the beach view. The newly renovated building on the left was ours.


I love the sand and all that is the beach.


Somehow I took this photo precisely during the bird's takeoff.


Going shoppin...so much money to burn, so little time...



I wonder if this is the street that Brendan Fraser lives on?



Ah, Puerto Vallarta...aka "Sunset City".




Watching the Oil on the Road to the Cup with Dean and Tracy from Victoria.

May 11th: Hackey Sack, boogie boarding, and Chillaxin...





Boogie Boarding was wicked. I only drowned once!


This pic sums up what we did most of the time during our 2 weeks.

Foot bag was one of our favorite pastimes.

May 12th: Fun times at the No Name Cafe and along the Malecon

Watching the Oil devour the Sharks at the No Name Cafe with fellow Edmontonians.


If you were wondering who was the wild one on our trip, just take a look up.

A typical view of the Malecon, PV's Whyte Ave.


Oooh, sand dragon!

Okay guys, this is gonna get a little weird...Two Dragons.

May 13th: Our last day in PV

"We're Leaving, on a Jetplane..." back to Alberta...until next time...

My biggest pet peeves, Part I

Well, well, there goes my commitment to updating this thing more often...oh well, here we go again...

Tipping

I only have 3 rules when it comes to this much overdone practice:

1) I don't tip for a job that I can do myself. Honestly, why would I tip some little punk kid in Mexico for opening the cab door for me on my way home from the Foam Party? People who expect to be tipped for useless jobs like that and others like handing you a paper towel in the washroom should go find a real job.

2) I will not tip if I am told by my waiter/bartender, "Excuse me, but tips are not included in the price," or, "We expect at least 18% tip from your table." Tips should NEVER be expected, only gratefully accepted on completion of a job excellently done job. Also, tipping should not be a set amount, like 15%, regardless of the service. I say 10% MAX and even if I only tip a loonie on ANY size meal, that should be enough.

You see, the problem lies within the corporate structure of the restaurant business itself. The managers think they can get away with paying their employees shittyier wages and expecting the customer pick up the rest of their salary. I say that wages should be increased and the societal expectations on tipping be lowered. After all, why should we, the customer, be picking up an additional 15% to 20% of the employees wages when we have just paid alot for a nice meal (or overpaid for a crappy meal and less than average service).

3) This brings me to my third rule. It seems in today's world that everybody and their dog expects to be tipped, no matter what their job is. For the convenience store clerk to the hotel maid, to the asshole bartender who doesn't even pay attention to you unless you have chesty assets. I notice that all the new Interac machines come with a default "Tip Amount" screen now, no matter what you may happen to be purchasing. For crying out loud!! I don't get tipped for MY job! Why should I tip for a job, even a service industry job, that has traditionally, NEVER been a tipped job? I do not mind tipping at restaurants and hair salons, but beyond that I do not believe that any other job is deserving of a tip.

I mean, c'mon people, its your FREAKIN' JOB! Do your job well, accept your wage for it and don't expect the customer to tip you. That's the bottom line. In my opinion, bartenders and cab drivers should not be tipped, even though I do practice tipping them. What you should expect from your boss, if you are doing an exceptional job, is a RAISE. If you have been working the same dead end job and wondering why you're not getting ahead in life, or why all your non-tipping clients are assholes, you need to take a good long hard look at yourself and re-evaluate your life decisions.

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Now, I was going to get into some specific instances of times when I have received atrocious service and then been expected to tip for a job NOT done properly. But I don't want to name names or type anymore for that matter. You can ask me about them and I will tell you the tales.

I will however, publically boycott Avenue Pizza on the U of A campus for having the worst service I know and for having jerkoff employees.

And that's all for now folks, hope you enjoyed my rant and feel free to ridicule me in print if anything I said offended you. If I haven't pissed off anyone with this little number, then I have failed.

Dan out.